


you taste sweet

by fairygi (wonderscape)



Category: ATEEZ (Band)
Genre: Fluff, Friends to Lovers, Kissing, M/M, Studying, bio majors minhwa, sorry this is so short :(, this is just some good wholesome minhwa
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-10-28
Updated: 2019-10-28
Packaged: 2021-01-06 00:22:34
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,459
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/21217496
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/wonderscape/pseuds/fairygi
Summary: when seonghwa said he would do anything to keep mingi invested in studying for their upcoming bio exam, he wasn't quite expecting mingi to propose... this





	you taste sweet

**Author's Note:**

> this is depressingly short, but i had the sudden inspiration to write this and wanted to contribute anything, no matter how small, to the minhwa tag. minhwa is so underrated :'(

“How are sour tastes sensed?” Seonghwa asks, and he can practically feel Mingi melt into the floor across from him. The younger is sprawled out on the other side of the living room of Seonghwa’s apartment, limbs spread like he’s about to start making carpet angels. His red hair fans away from his face and looks a bit like a crimson halo. There’s always a glow about him that reminds Seonghwa of something ethereal, of something that shouldn’t actually exist. Seonghwa can never figure out how even though he’s a biology major, he’s able to wax such intricate poetic about Mingi.

“They’re sour,” the redhead offers up weakly.

Seonghwa snorts and looks down at the laptop balancing on his thighs. He uses two fingers to zoom in slightly on the PowerPoint slide with the taste sensory pathway diagrams. “Which ion binds to the receptor?” he prompts.

A moment passes and Mingi’s cheeks puff out as he stares up at the ceiling. Seonghwa watches in fond amusement that he’s learned very carefully how to conceal. They exist in a delicate balance―Mingi is himself, loud and expressive and adorable and everything Seonghwa wants in the world, and Seonghwa has to pretend he doesn’t want to kiss the younger at any and all given moments. Mingi can’t hear this song he unknowingly dances to and Seonghwa intends to keep it that way.

Finally, the redhead mumbles to the ceiling, “Hydrogen?”

“Good,” Seonghwa confirms, and he can see one corner of Mingi’s mouth pull upwards. The muscles in Seonghwa’s face begin to mimic the expression, but he relaxes them before Mingi can see. The song keeps playing. “Does the hydrogen ion block or open the channel?”

Mingi purses his lips. Seonghwa darts his eyes away. He only looks back when he feels the redhead peering at him through narrowed eyes. “This feels like a trick question,” Mingi says, like it’s Seonghwa’s fault for making it sound so.

“It’s not, we studied this already,” Seonghwa replies. Mingi’s eyes only narrow further as he sticks his tongue out at the older, whose gaze take a split second too long to pull away from his mouth. Fuck.

“It’s a trick question, so I say it blocks the channel.” With a dramatic flop of his arm, Mingi makes a buzzing noise and looks back up at the ceiling. “Final answer.”

“You are correct,” Seonghwa says. He ignores the triumphant whoop Mingi lets out. “Okay, so what happens after the channel is blocked?”

Mingi’s victorious mood shatters as he groans and rolls onto his side so he’s facing Seonghwa. His hair flops over to reveal an adorable little ear (he also has to know how that functions, too), and blood rushes into the cheek pressed against the floor. It almost matches his hair color and Seonghwa resists the urge to smile like a fucking idiot. “I don’t _ know_,” he whines with a pout for emphasis, in case Seonghwa dared to question his lack of knowledge on the subject.

Seonghwa knows how to read these signs―when they’d studied for the last exam, Mingi had devolved into a similar pouting baby just moments before he convinced Seonghwa to ditch studying in favor of putting on a movie and cuddling with him on the couch. Which, yeah, hadn’t been the _ worst _thing ever, but Seonghwa hadn’t studied any more after that and his last exam grade definitely reflected that sad fact. He couldn’t afford to get distracted this time.

“You have to stay with me,” he says. “We have to get through this content. After this we still have…” He checks the study guide, “...thermoreception, electroreception, and photoreception to cover.”

Mingi positively _ wails_, and Seonghwa realizes a little belatedly that mentioning everything they still had to study probably wasn’t the best way to keep the younger invested. He feels panic rise in his throat when Mingi pulls his knees up to his chest and rolls onto his other side so he’s facing away from Seonghwa. Seonghwa learns best when he’s studying with someone else, and despite how it may seem, he learns the most when he reviews with Mingi. The redhead tends to not pay attention in class (he’d rather draw cartoons and shove them at the older, who sits beside and deliberately ignores him) so Seonghwa has to teach him all the material, which in turn helps Seonghwa force himself to understand everything. It’s a good system, but it only works when Mingi is receptive to actively participating in the process. Seonghwa’s already taught him the four main taste transduction pathways so now all Mingi has to do is answer the questions. This is important review for both of them.

“Mingi,” Seonghwa tries, but the younger just curls in tighter against himself. Seonghwa feels himself breaking. He likes to think he’s above begging, but this class grade is almost entirely exam-based and his GPA really can’t afford a B.

Mingi makes a low defeated sound in his throat and Seonghwa breaks.

“Oh, you big baby,” he sighs to himself before he pitches his voice up and whines, “Mingi-yah~”

He hates himself for doing it and he hates the way Mingi’s head actually turns at that call of his name. Literally _ fuck _ Mingi. This is the worst.

“Mingi-yah, please study with me,” Seonghwa pouts. The redhead’s body loosens just enough that Seonghwa can tell he’s considering. Before he loses him again, Seonghwa adds with a punctuating frown, “Please, I’ll do anything.”

That seems to catch Mingi’s attention, because he’s sitting up and regarding Seonghwa with a curious gaze. It’s such quick progress that Seonghwa feels he might cry. Thank _ god_. “Anything?” Mingi asks skeptically. “You’ll do anything?”

“Literally anything,” Seonghwa confirms, basking in the relief of a saved exam grade.

“Will you kiss me?”

The relief washes out of him, rushing out of his body just as quickly as it’d flooded in. Seonghwa feels the shock manifest on his face as his jaw drops and eyes widen until he thinks they might pop out. “What?”

“If I keep studying with you, will you kiss me?”

Seonghwa searches for some sign Mingi is joking. That he’s just kidding around, just trying to lighten the stress of studying for a moment. But the younger just sits there on the carpet, legs folded under him and hands folded into his lap. The only thing Seonghwa picks up on is nervousness, which shows in the way Mingi taps his fingers quickly against his thighs.

“I…” Seonghwa tries, but the symphony is breaking against the dam in his brain and it's all he can hear. It delays his response long enough that hesitation starts bleeding into Mingi’s face, eyes dropping to the legs of the couch and fingers wringing together.

“Never mind, you can just for―”

“Yeah,” Seonghwa finally gets out. Mingi’s eyes snap back to meet the older’s, looking far too hopeful, and Seonghwa is pretty sure this time he might _ actually _ cry. “Yeah, I will.”

Mingi’s whole face lights up. It’s mesmerizing to watch. His eyes brighten just before they disappear under smile-bunched cheeks. Seonghwa would do anything to protect that smile, that sign that everything is alright in his world. “Okay, one kiss for one question. An even trade.”

Holy shit. “Okay.” Holy _ shit_.

“Alright then, hit me,” Mingi says, sounding so eager Seonghwa thinks he might black out. Stress response, they cover that in the nervous system unit. This might be the most stressful thing Seonghwa has ever had to deal with.

“Okay… I, uh…” Seonghwa tries to remember where they were. What the hell were they even talking about before this? He scans the taste reception diagrams but all he can hear is Mingi’s voice, _ Will you kiss me? Will you kiss me? _ “Um… what happens after the hydrogen ion blocks the channel?”

Mingi seems to genuinely consider the question. He thinks hard for a minute, giving Seonghwa a small reprieve to process exactly what just happened. And what’s going to happen after this. Once Mingi answers the question, Seonghwa is going to have to kiss him.

_ God_, he wishes Mingi would hurry up.

“I know!” the redhead blurts. He must be confident in his answer, because he’s already crawling forward on all fours towards Seonghwa. A victorious glint shines in his eyes. “Because the channel is blocked, potassium ions can’t leave the receptor cell.”

Seonghwa doesn’t have to check the diagram to know that’s correct. He couldn’t look at it even if he wanted to, because Mingi is getting closer and he is beautiful, like something science can’t explain, and Seonghwa can’t tear his gaze away.

“Now you have to kiss me,” Mingi says. He props both arms on either side of Seonghwa’s legs and waits. Seonghwa can smell his cherry shampoo and he wonders if Mingi has always been able to hear the song he'd tried so hard to silence.

Seonghwa closes the distance between them as Mingi's eyes flutter closed and brushes his lips against the redhead’s. Maybe the act of the kiss itself isn’t earth shattering, but the fact that _ Seonghwa is kissing Mingi _ has the older feeling like the whole universe is falling apart. It’s electrifying, knowing that he is kissing Mingi, that Mingi _ wants _him to kiss him. Seonghwa feels his heart thudding in his chest, so loud and urgent against his ribs he’s not sure it won’t escape and jump into Mingi’s hands.

Seonghwa presses his lips more firmly against the line of Mingi’s mouth and the younger whines in the back of his throat. It feels so _ good_, but Seonghwa resists, and pulls back before he can lose himself.

This time when Mingi whines, he’s clearly upset. He opens his eyes and falls back onto his legs, knees folded underneath him. “That’s it?” he demands.

“You only answered one question,” Seonghwa replies, embarrassingly breathless from such a simple closed-mouth kiss. But holy shit, he just kissed Mingi.

Mingi gapes at him. He's adorable, pink-cheeked and pink-lipped. “Are you serious?”

“Answer another question, and I’ll use my tongue.”

The redhead looks pained. “This has to be extortion. Cruel and unusual punishment. You’re wringing fucking sensory systems answers out of me just so I can have your tongue in my mouth.”

His phrasing kicks all the air back out of Seonghwa’s lungs. He wheezes against the loss and chokes out, “_Jesus_, Mingi.”

“Fine.” Mingi nods towards the laptop. “What’s the next question?”

Seonghwa attempts to regain his breath again. “What… what do the trapped potassium ions do within the cell?”

Mingi barely even blinks. “They open voltage-gated calcium ion channels and cause a calcium ion influx.”

“Funny how you suddenly remember everything when kissing is involved―” Seonghwa’s snarky comment dies in his throat, cut off by Mingi’s arms caging him again and the younger’s face very close to his.

“Just kiss me,” Mingi breathes, and who the _ hell _is Seonghwa to deny him?

This time he licks against Mingi’s mouth, running his tongue along the seam of his lips. Mingi complies immediately, mouth opening so Seonghwa can dive into it. He tastes the roof of Mingi’s mouth, the back of his teeth, his tongue moving smoothly against Seonghwa’s own. It’s fucking intoxicating but Seonghwa manages to pull back just enough to ask, “How does the calcium influx start the signal transd―”

He doesn’t make it through the question because Mingi is dragging his laptop to the side and sliding himself into Seonghwa’s lap. “Fuck that,” he says passionately, and then his mouth is back on Seonghwa’s. His legs straddle the older’s waist and he tangles his hands into his hair. Seonghwa groans and places his hands on Mingi’s hips to pull him even closer.

Kissing Mingi is quite possibly the best thing Seonghwa has ever had the pleasure of doing. The younger is so receptive and responsive, adjusting to every tug Seonghwa gives to his red hair and returning the favor, scratching his blunt nails against Seonghwa’s scalp.

The older leans back against the couch so he can focus on matching Mingi’s pace. He catches the redhead’s tongue and sucks, eliciting the prettiest whimper he’s ever heard. Drawing out that sound―and a litany of others―becomes Seonghwa’s goal and he kisses Mingi like he’ll never be able to kiss him again.

“You taste so good,” Mingi pants into the small gap between them when they remember they have to breathe. “So sweet.”

Seonghwa’s brain, somehow still faithfully on the exam he should be studying for, jumps back to the sweet taste transduction pathway. G proteins, adenylate cyclase, cAMP―

Mingi must see the look in Seonghwa’s eyes because he growls out a “Don’t you fucking _ dare_” that Seonghwa might find more attractive than he should. The older promptly forgets everything he’s learned about sweet taste reception when Mingi recaptures his mouth, licking the top of his mouth right as he lifts himself slightly in Seonghwa’s lap, wraps his arms closer around Seonghwa’s head and pulls on his hair so the older can meet the new angle.

Mingi is both taller and generally larger than Seonghwa but he fits perfectly in Seonghwa’s arms, resting in Seonghwa’s lap like he’s always belonged there. He kisses the older in a way that makes him wonder why they haven’t been doing this for as long as they’ve known each other. Seonghwa spent years pining and pretending and hiding, and for what? When Mingi takes his lip between his teeth and tugs, confessing seems like it would’ve been worth the risk.

When Seonghwa draws back and opens his mouth, he can tell Mingi is so close to kicking his ass. “Mingi-yah,” he begins before Mingi can threaten him again, “will you let me take you on a date?”

This answer comes more easily than any previous one. “Of course,” the younger breathes, and then he’s kissing Seonghwa again and again and Seonghwa will never get enough of the way he tastes.

Seonghwa does not study anymore for the exam after that, but he still manages to earn a much better grade than the first time. He also gets to take Mingi out on so many dates that end with both of them tasting the sweetness of ice cream and the saltiness of popcorn and the sourness of candy from each other’s mouths. And he learns very quickly that kisses are an excellent negotiation tool and often barters them for more study time with his boyfriend that _ does _help both of them pass advanced bio with A’s (despite how vehemently Mingi tried to argue that just kissing was a much better way to pass time).

And every time Seonghwa kisses him, Mingi tastes just as addicting as Seonghwa believed he would for so long and believes he always will.

**Author's Note:**

> thank you for reading! i hope you enjoyed it! i have some other actual Long fics planned, i really hope i can finish them at some point. it's been like uhhhh 6 months since i last posted something so... idk. anyway, stan minhwa! <3
> 
> have a great day/night :D


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